exploration mingle: WHAT LIES BENEATH

[riverviewmod]

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: exploration mingle: a dungeon crawl
when: May 15 - June 15
where: The River and what lies beneath.
warnings: likely violence; please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

what lies beneath

One of the major and most highly-valued cultural concepts in Riverview is that of exploration, expansion. Especially now that, with the recent influx of new arrivals, as the portal kicks into high gear for reasons not entirely known, the Inhabited City, already comfortably full, is rapidly becoming overpopulated. With all the refugees from other worlds pouring in from day to day, the city's safe space and resources are being taxed to their breaking point.

Right now, exploration and expansion is key, and each month, the government has decided to focus on a particular objective, in order to unite citizens in expanding, securing, and supplying the city for everyone's benefit.

the story so far

Exploration & Expansion Progress Report ● Flooding in Riverview ● The Guardians of the Deep ● SUBMIT YOUR THREAD

After a successful completion of last month's goal - an initiative to clear out and clean up the amusement park, the Government has turned its attention to slightly more practical matters.

For the past couple of months, there's been some serious flooding in Riverview Quarantine that's resulted in the evacuation of many riverfront properties, leaving many residents in emergency relief shelters. In April, the reason for the flooding was discovered, as the Guardians of the Deep emerged from the swollen river and communicated with mages from Garmarye Magic Research. As April wore down and May began, the Guardians have been gently guided out to sea in the first yearly migration they've had in the many generations before awakening from hibernation.

That's all well and good, but one wonders...if they were called Guardians...what were they guarding?

how it works

● Phases: Each prompt is a different phase of the operation. Characters may partake in whichever part of the operation they choose, whether it is a large and prominent part, or a more of a backseat or support role. Characters may participate in as many phases as they wish.

● Completion: When next month's exploration mingle goes up, the mission featured on this exploration mingle will be considered complete, and game canon, providing the entry has 200+ comments on it.

● Submissions: If your character and/or your character's team has threaded something out to completion, or if you have added and solved a complication to the mission via player plot either on this log or elsewhere in the game, please use the "submit your solution" link above to submit that information so it can be added to the Progress Report.

● Thread Rewards: This month, I have created five different items as rewards with three power levels for each item. Any character participating in a completed thread with at least one other character, for any phase prompt by July 15 will be able to pick a keyword corresponding to one of these rewards when they submit the thread at the link above, threads in each phase corresponding to a power level. Every character participating in a completed thread will be eligible to receive an item. Completed threads must take place on this entry. Details of what the reward items look like can be found at the submission link for use in threads.

● Entry Reward: The reward for completion of this month's exploration objective will be a piece of worldbuilding/lore about the Portal and the first people on the moon.

phase i: the labyrinth

Teams of mages and divers have managed to find what the Guardians of the Deep were guarding. It turns out that underneath the river, there is a labyrinthine maze of tunnels and caverns that appear to be created rather than natural. Divers have managed to bring up a few pieces of rubble that have been dated back approximately 1.8 million years, which is around when historians of the Quarantine theorize that the first sentient people came through the portal and ended up trapped on the moon. Not much is known about these First People, but it is theorized that whatever structure is under the river was created by them, originally beside the river and lost to time, buried by a change in the river's course.

And obviously, everyone wants to explore it!

With a bit of construction and magic, a barrier has been created in the river that splits the flow and allows access to the entrance to the waterlogged underground structure, and initial drone exploration has given explorers a very rudimentary idea of how it might look inside. Circular and at least as wide as the river (perhaps wider), there is a series of labyrinthine tunnels that surround two layers of inner chambers, one in the shape of a ring and one circular.

Phase one of this month's mission is to make it through the labyrinths, mark a path through for anyone following, and clear that path of any remaining monsters or barriers. Characters who complete this objective and hang back to guard the exit route for those going further in will be considered as having completed Phase I for a Level 1 reward.

phase ii: the inner ring

Once the way has been cleared, a smaller group of explorers can move inside the ring-shaped chamber inside the labyrinth. The area looks like it is divided into rooms, living quarters that contain the remnants of lives left behind. A picture of the type of people who lived here emerges through the artifacts that explorers may find - clothing and stone relief carvings not worn away by the river water show what looks like a peaceful reptilian people, druidic and in tune with nature; bipedal with long, serpentine necks, they seem to have achieved peace on their new home before something happened to wipe them out.

Phase two of this month's mission is to make it through the inner ring to access the central chamber, and it's not all safe and peaceful. These were, after all, the homes of the First People, and even in a time almost 2 million years ago, people locked their homes before leaving them - and in this case, they seem to have known they were leaving for a long time and seriously wanted everyone to stay out. Expect every door in this ring-shaped chamber to be laced with traps both magical and mechanical, ranging from rock falls, pits with spikes, poisons, magical thorny vines, and potions or spells that induce hallucinations and elaborate illusions. Pretty much anything you might think of can be found there, as long as it is somehow related to nature, plant life, earth or water or wood or stone. Characters who make their way through the inner ring and stop to guard the entrance, or characters who are felled by a booby trap in the inner ring and have to turn back will be considered as having completed Phase II for a Level 2 reward.

phase iii: the central chamber

Once the inner ring has been mapped out and the traps safely sprung, the way is cleared to the central chamber, the deepest and most protected level of the structure under the river. It seems obvious to anyone who looks at the layout of this place that the whole thing was built to protect the center of the structure and lead people toward it at the same time - to what purpose? There must be something valuable here.

Phase three of this month's mission is to get through the door to the inner chamber and find what treasure might lie inside. The catch? Not only is the door guarded by complicated puzzles that shift and change for each new group that attempts to get inside, ranging from a riddle to glyph reading to games of shape and pattern, but once the door opens, intrepid travelers face another Guardian.

Much like the puzzles, the Guardian inside the central chamber changes form for each team facing it, and quickly adapts to counteract that team's greatest strengths. Whether the team is comprised of regular people or gods, the Guardian will be strong enough to give them an excellent fight. Summoned through magic, the Guardian will take on a different form each time, but has the intelligence level of a dolphin and the ability to understand some speech. Whether the Guardian is fought or tamed is up to each party's discretion, but it must be conquered in order to reach the center of the chamber, where a tantalizing, glowing blue orb sits on a heavily-decorated pillar at the center of the room, along with enough reward items for every member of the party.

Anyone who tries to take the orb, however, will find themselves knocked unconscious for a period of 10 minutes with no ill side-effects. Unfortunately, the orb itself will need to be extracted and studied by a team of senior mages from Gamarye Magic Research - but they couldn't have got there without the help of this month's explorers!

Characters who solve a puzzle at the door to the inner chamber and either tame or conquer the beast in battle, or who are felled while trying will be considered as having completed Phase III for a Level 3 reward.

phase iv: wildcard

Have an idea for a mission-adjacent plot, or want to make up an unexpected plot twist or problem and solve it with your character? Just write up a starter, and don't forget to give yourself props by submitting it for the Progress Report. Your mod will respond to any wildcard submissions with the power level of the reward the character can claim for the original content.

navigation
[Ancient Civilizations: Lost & Found by Alex Feliksovich; bonus inspiration artwork: The Secret Cave by Maxime Delcambre]

Comments

QUESTIONS

[riverviewmod]

Any questions for the mod can be asked here.

SUBMIT YOUR SOLUTION

[riverviewmod]

how it works

● All submitted threads must be complete by July 15th, giving players two months to complete them.
● Once you have completed a thread up to your preferred phase of this month's mission, fill out the textbox below with all of the requested information to receive a reward.
● There are five different types of rewards, each identified with a keyword, that will be further customized with specifics so each reward is slightly different. Each reward has three power levels based on how deeply the character found it in the dungeon.
● Each character can receive only one reward. If your character made it through phase i they will receive a level 1 reward, if your character made it through phase ii they can receive a level 1 or 2 reward, and if your character made it through phase iii they can receive a level 1, 2, or 3 reward. Power level is based on which part of the dungeon your character picked up the reward item they chose to keep.

rewards

● Flora: These are hollow spherical carvings out of what appears to be jade, weighing around 1 lb. The carvings vary between items and seem to shift as the light hits the item from different directions.
● Fauna: These are carvings in the shapes of various animals out of what seems to be soapstone. They are smooth to the touch, and feel warm despite how cold the cavern is, just begging the finder to touch them.
● Healing: These are necklaces, bracelets, or anklets, draped on a table or hook on the wall or littered on the floor, with an unbreakable string made of leather, fiber, or metal and with a flat circular pendant about an inch across that appears to be made of opal or something similar. Colors vary wildly.
● Armor: These are clothing clasps in a variety of sizes and shapes that can be affixed to belts, sewn on as a buckle, used to close capes, or otherwise be added to a person's outfit in some way. They appear to be made from an unknown metal, carefully smithed.
● Companion: These are egg-shaped items, weighing around 1 lb, out of what seems to be marble or a gemstone, with wildly varying colors. A small, closed crack is evident somewhere on the surface of each.

submit

● <b>Character Name:</b> ● <b>Link to Thread:</b> <a href="LINK">here</a> ● <b>Summary of Events:</b> (quick summary of what happened) ● <b>Phase Completed:</b> (if you want an item of a lower power level than the phase completed, just put the lower phase number here) ● <b>Keyword:</b> ● <b>Character's Favorite Animal:</b> ● <b>Character's Favorite Color:</b>

EXAMPLE SUBMISSION

[riverviewmod]

● Character Name: John Doe
● Link to Thread: fake link
● Summary of Events: John and Jane got seriously lost in the labyrinth, but made it through to the inner circle, where John got hit by a vine trap and had to go back. Jane went on without him when he insisted, and joined another team.
● Phase Completed: Phase II
● Keyword: Flora
● Character's Favorite Animal: deer
● Character's Favorite Color: red

[winscenario]

● Character Name: James T. Kirk
● Link to Thread: here
● Summary of Events: Jim and Misty solved the door's riddle, went past, crossed a bridge over a fiery pit, put a three-headed monster to sleep by singing to it and finally made it into the central chamber!
● Phase Completed: III
● Keyword: fauna
● Character's Favorite Animal: how can you make me choose!!! whales
● Character's Favorite Color: gold

[mistyday]

● Character Name: Misty Day
● Link to Thread: here
● Summary of Events: Misty and Jim solve a riddle, find a key, cross a flaming bridge, and lull Fluffy a three-headed monster to reach the central chamber.
● Phase Completed: III
● Keyword: Companion
● Character's Favorite Animal: alligator
● Character's Favorite Color: green

[wingedman]

● Character Name: Sam Wilson
● Link to Thread: here
● Summary of Events: Sam, Steve, and Tony made their way through a series of traps in the inner ring, but failed to open the door to the inner chamber.
● Phase Completed: II
● Keyword: Fauna
● Character's Favorite Animal: falcon (big surprise right???)
● Character's Favorite Color: red

[neversurrender]

● Character Name: Steve Rogers
● Link to Thread: here
● Summary of Events: Steve, Sam, and Tony investigated the inner ring, set off a dart trap, got through a chamber where the walls began to close in on them, crossed over a pit of alligator-snakes, and reached the door to the inner chamber but failed to open it.
● Phase Completed: Phase II
● Keyword: Armor
● Character's Favorite Animal: Dog
● Character's Favorite Color: Blue

Sam/Tony/Steve - Phase II/III - Closed

[wingedman]

[Of course Steve's gung-ho for exploring, and Sam, mostly recovered, isn't gonna let him run off into the jungle by himself, even if this place is mostly underground (not exactly his forte). But that's one of the reasons why he drags Tony in on the fun, to have someone else to watch their backs.

It's like getting the band back together (although Sam's not exactly a key part of the Avengers, he knows that), another step in the direction of rebuilding the bridges they demolished back in Leipzig, or even in the conference room back at the compound.

By the time they get there, the labyrinth is mapped out and guarded, and they're one of the parties dispatched to make it through the inner chamber. Sam glances at the first door and wonders if they should've brought a rogue along - bad party composition, he tells himself.]

...anyone else feel like we should be rolling for initiative?

[Sorry, Steve, you probably won't get that reference.]

[buildsomething]

[It's not like Tony's expression can be see through the helmet, but the force of the dry look he's giving Sam can probably be felt anyway. He's going to remember this for the next time anyone calls him a nerd.]

Or are we just letting the tank go first?

[Which doesn't mean he isn't going to pay back in kind. And he's pretty sure this is the reason he brought the suit along in the first place. You don't exactly wear armor to an unground maze because it's comfortable. He carefully shifts forward in front of the other two, reaching for the door.]

You maybe want to take a couple steps back.

Breq | ota!

[breqintopieces]

i. [ throughout the month ]

[This mission is the kind, Breq can only assume, the Surveyors were created for. More importantly than that, however, she's begun to feel restless. She's lived for nineteen years with a purpose, a sense of direction. Here, there's no Anaander Mianaai to point herself at. She's the spinning needle of a compass, desperately struggling toward her north.

It's the need to be doing something that's driven her down to the depths. Right now, she stands at the entrance of one of the tunnels, peering into the dim confines of it as she finishes giving one final check of her gear.

But some rustle of sound, or the echo of feet, has her turning. One hand goes to the gun at her hip, then draws away.]

You should announce yourself when coming up on a person. [She says it curtly, visibly eying her approacher.]

iii. [ early june ]

It looks like a game of counters.

[This isn't the first tricky door Breq's come across in this exploration of the depths, but it looks a good bit more complicated to her than the other plain old traps do.

In front of her, the door is set up with a series of shallow depressions, an ornate series of tiles raised and depressed into the surface of the door seemingly at random. Breq doesn't reach to touch it, but examines it, her arms crossed.]

Or more poison tiles.

iv.

[If these options don't work for you, PM me and I can come up with another starter!]

i.

[buildsomething]

Sorry.

[The slightly electronic voice comes before the armor makes an appearance around the corner. Being stealthy usually isn't an option, especially when he can't fly, so Tony isn't really bothering. He still stops a fair distance away, trying to project the fact that he's not an enemy.]

I usually assume people can hear me coming.

iii

[valr]

[If pressed, Kara's reasoning for being here is that she's bored. Maybe there's a challenge down here, something to think about other than everything else about this place. Fighting is easy, traps are easy. Puzzles... less so, but she can handle it.

Her sword is on her hip and she decided not to bother with a gun; it's unlikely she'll need it and so far her guess has been right.

The inner ring is giving her more trouble than the outer labyrinth, monsters are easy, but some of the more magical traps have given her pause, so when she spots a woman by one of the doors, she decides a little help won't go astray. She's careful to make a sound as she approaches, her footfalls echoing slightly in the chamber.]

If it's poison, I take it.

[She's immune to every poison she's met so far in her life.]

Ryan Fielding | open

[lykou]

I. Perception Check (open to all)

[ As soon as Ryan hears that there's a sunken temple in need fo clearing out and exploring, Ryan feels a weight lift off his shoulders, as he finally finds something to occupy himself. He loves looking after the dogs, and he does make sure to keep up his day job, but his wanderlust was starting to make him fidgety.

As he delves back into the labyrinth, he's not ashamed to grab another adventurer at random and party up. There's safety in numbers, after all, and he's a big guy with a big weapon, so he likes to think he offers a bit of protection.

He stands at the first intersection, looking to his newest adventuring partner. ]

So, what do you think? Left or right?

II. Dexterity Saving Throw (open to 1)

[ As he finally manages to delve deeper into the labyrinth, he puts out an arm to hold his companion back. ]

Stay behind me. We don't know what kind of creatures are down here, but it's safe to assume the deeper we go, the more dangerous they'll get. The big guys beat up the little guys, and take the deepest, safest places...

[ Ryan is good with monsters. He is not, however, good with traps; he forges on ahead, going quietly as he can, but not paying much mind to where he's walking. ]

III. Roll for Initiative (open to 1)

[ Upon approaching the door to what he can only presume is close to the center of this structure, and having not learned his lesson in the mid-chambers of this place, reaches a hand out to touch the door, where lettered tiles are set are set into an open-ended frame, allowing them to be removed and rearranged.

At present, the tiles read NO WAKE, and his eyebrows knit together as he tries to parse it out. ]

What do you think it means? Like a funeral, or like waking up?

i

[breqintopieces]

[Ryan's not the only one who came to investigate this place quickly. Breq hadn't been expecting to be scooped up immediately upon coming to the drained entrance, but when Ryan asks her along, she doesn't refuse. He's right, in that there's strength in numbers. And she may be a much slighter frame than he is, but she's wiry and she carries the gun in her hands like she's used it for a long time.

Currently she's examining the two tunnels ahead of them.]

Right. [She nods in that direction.] Then right again, unless it's a dead end.

[As Ryan watches, a there-and-gone glimmer of silver appears around her body, cocooning her from head to toe.]

III

[spellslots]

[Taako honestly hadn't been that surprised at the request from Ryan to check out this stupid weird labyrinth, and while he's not technically doing the adventuring thing anymore, it can't hurt to get out and about. Maybe there's cool stuff worth looting. After the shit he went through because of the Guardians, he deserves a chance at stealing some neat stuff.

So, he's here, helping to deal with the occasional trap or monster with a little bit of magic and more than happy for Ryan to take the brunt of the hits. That's just how this shit works.]

I'm thinking more like a sleeping gas or something, but maybe we gotta move 'em around to spell something else?

[Anagrams.

The worst.]

II

[vedaandme]

[Tieria didn't argue. Certainly, he was armed, and durable, and fast, but he wasn't stupid. If they could avoid confrontations with creatures altogether, then, yes... he would much prefer that.

However, Tieria was perceptive. And that tile about mid-way down the hallway was slight raised from the others. A trick of the light? A shifting ruin? No... that was a switch. Tieria reached out and grabbed Ryan's arm just as the other's foot was hovering over that awkward tile.]

Don't! Step!

i

[jolting]

[Victor recognizes this guy as the one who was talking about wolves a while back. Instantly okay with them teaming up. He spools out some more string and tries to tilt his head in such a way that the light he has strapped to his head doesn't blind the other guy]

The rule of a maze is to pick a direction and keep picking it every time you hit a crossroad. So if we're going right, we're going to keep going right until we can't any longer.

superboy | ota

[supersweet]

(( jon is in his costume for all these prompts ))

[ phase one: clearing the way. ]

[ Jon is still only a junior cadet. He's probably not authorized for these missions. Probably. But that doesn't stop him from coming out here. He should be doing his part too, not just hanging back where it's safe. He's helped before. His powers are now under better control. Jon wanted to help. He had to.

Good people get involved.

Still, he's never been one to hurt anything, even monsters. At least not badly. So he mostly blows them down or away with his super-breath, looking a little sheepish. ]

It's not the coolest power, but it . . . works?

[ shh don't judge. ]

[ phase two: the inner ring ]

[ Jon has watched Indiana Jones. His dad had always loved old films so that was what they watched most of the time, despite how often Jon and his mom teased him for his tastes. But Jon hadn't expected the inner sanctum to be this much like Indiana Jones. When he stumbled into a pit full of spikes, he barely managed to keep himself afloat. ]

Woah. Too close, too close!

[ He's not even sure if the spikes will do anything, but he's not taking any chances. He glances at anyone nearby. ]

Uhhh. Need a lift?

phase one

[otherflash]

[ Wally isn't sure allowing Jon to take part in the exploration of the labyrinth is such a good idea. But when the boy expressed his desire to help, he didn't have the heart to tell him he couldn't because he remembers what it was like when Barry told him no back in his Kid Flash days.

Though he has to admit the decision is looking better as he catches sight of Jon easily dispatching the monsters around him with his super-breath while he avoids a strike from the monster he is tangling with himself. The missed strike causes the creature to become off-balance, allowing Wally to take advantage and ram it into the wall with enough force that it knocks the monster unconscious.

With all of the monsters around them being down for the count for the moment, he speeds over next to the boy with a grin on his face. ]

Hey, whatever works is totally cool with me.

[ He gives Jon's hair a quick ruffle, before he blurs into action and picks up the downed monsters one-by-one so he can drop them off somewhere deeper in the jungle where they won't be a problem. It's only a matter of seconds until he is standing in front of Jon again, the area now monster free, with his hands on his hips as he looks down the next part of the tunnel. ]

Ready to see what else this place has in store for us?

Yuri Lowell | ToV

[sentence]

[ phase two: the inner ring ]

[ His hands gently resting on the relief carvings on the wall, Yuri feels more at home than he has since arriving. This place is... a home, it once was, and the feeling leaves him hollow and comforted at the same time.

It's hard to feel comfort once you just dodged a spike trap, though. An arm instinctively outstretches across his companion, not wanting them to feel the all-too-undesirable feeling of impalement. ]

Do you think they had a system? For keeping track of who had what. How often did they accidentally kill neighbors?

...

Maybe I'm interpreting it wrong.

Jumps in!

[bottombitch]

Uwah!!

[ Yep. That totally un-manly squeal of surprise is coming from a guy who instantly regrets making it. He was so excited to go on this mission, but all these traps are really doing a number on his heart.

Aoba volunteered for the assignment, thinking that his knack for technology and identifying useful salvage as a part of his day to day job in quarantine could prove useful. He's by no means a historian or archeologist but there's something exciting about being a part of something big. Most of the time, he watched heroes fly around taking on the big problems in the city, so it's fun to actually be a part of a large effort where just about anyone can lend a hand... and not just to hand out blankets or soup, which is how he's spent most of his time as friends and strangers alike fell ill.

Swiping a small hand towel under his bangs, he wipes sweat off his brow and puts a hand over his heart. That was a close call and Aoba still feels his heart banging away at his ribcage as he tries to calm down from that sudden shock. ]

S-seriously?! That's what goes through your head after something like that?!

[ How dare Yuri act all cool, that makes Aoba feel even more humiliated that he just made an embarrassing sound! ]

More importantly! A-are you okay?

dave strider | homestuck | ota af

[chumpelstiltskin]

[Dave has avoided the outskirts of the city for the most part. He's never really ventured much into the jungle, happy to enjoy a cushy, safe life indoors for the most part. Now, he has a new job, and he feels like he's developing a little bit of Imposter Syndrome. Of course, most of the people who work at the museum are scholarly, well-educated and kind of snobby. Then there's Dave. He dropped out of high school at 13 when Earth exploded, he's been in Riverview for a combined total of less than a year and he's young. Comparatively speaking.

When he finds out that new ruins are up for exploring, he's quick to take the chance to show initiative. He does so quietly, eager to surprise the higher ups with some freshly dredged up artifacts. He suspects that nobody really knows he has powers, because he's not in the habit of telling people.]


i. phase i
[Dave wants to be normal but, at the same time, feels a little out of place in jeans and a hoodie with a shitty sword and a backpack strapped to his back and a camera around his neck. He's walking into the labyrinth and seeing huge, muscular people charge into the maze with weapons in hand.

Dave hangs back, he's taking a slower approach and taking in the sights around him. He snaps the occasional photo, but his hand doesn't veer far from the wall. He's trailing a marker alongside him, leaving a red line of ink on the wall as he passes. When one runs out, he caps it and pockets it and replaces it.]

ii. phase ii
[The Inner Ring is where the meat and bones of this place seems to be. Dave isn't looking for any grand treasure, he's looking for remnants of what used to live in the ruins.

Dave can be found crouching by the stone carvings, taking photographs of anything he can't pick up and put in a bag. Sometimes he kicks himself off the ground, taking flight so he can take photos from different angles, higher angles, noting what can't be seen on foot.]

Is this Godzilla's origin story?

[He asks himself, quietly, but he's genuinely awe struck by what he's seeing.

He's immediately drawn to the houses, even if this whole place is giving him the heebie jeebies. This place is balls deep in a weird, permeating feeling of sadness. He doesn't see many long-necked, bi-pedal lizard people around, he thinks that's significant.

Although they're a peaceful people, he's still careful when he starts to try kick down doors. Who knows what kind of feral, moon-monsters could be lying in wait?

When he successfully kicks the door down, the spring trap shoots up instantly. Spikes burst out of the floor and Dave zips backward at an inhumanely fast speed. He pulls a concerned face, stepping back to pick up a rock to throw at the door before he can be sure it's safe to weave around those spikes and go inside.]

[ ii ]

[supersweet]

[ Superboy notices the spikes as he floats down. He's keeping an eye out for strange traps, trying to break them apart so that no one else can trigger them. Superboy is nigh-invulnerable, but other people are not. ]

Everything okay?

Misty Day | OTA

[mistyday]

phase ii: the inner ring

[At first, Misty is simply filled with awe as she walks around the ring. The place is pulsing with deep, ancient magic, not necessarily malicious, but... wary. Defensive, secret, something she can certainly understand. Part of her even wonders if they should be disturbing this place, yet she knows too that they can't just leave the city to the mercy of whatever lies at the heart of this labyrinth.

She stops outside of one door and gently traces the outline of the reptilian figure carved into it. Alien though their images are, they're still beautiful. Turning to her companion, she says:]

Should we go in?

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup knows little and less of magic, but he's fascinated by the architecture, and the carvings. His fake leg taps quietly on the stone floor with every step he takes, compared to the near-silence of the leather boot on his other foot. He's openly gazing in awe at the surroundings, the archways and the images, one hand on Toothless's neck as the dragon basically acts like a guide to keep him from walking into anything.

The night fury's ear fins are back, his eyes slightly narrowed, wary of this place and the secrets it might hold, the uncertain tension in the air. Glancing back down to Toothless, he smiles at him reassuringly.] It's okay, bud. No monsters so far, see?

[He looks back up to Misty, paused in front of a door, and nods.] We should at least try to. It feels like there's something deeper than this, even, we just- have the find the right entrance.

Hiccup Haddock III | OTA

[thisisamazing]

Phase II
[It's nice to get out of his empty cabin for a change. When the call went out, Hiccup volunteered immediately to go help explore the ruins beneath the river. He and Toothless are both suited to underground exploration and to figuring things out. He's done something similar to this before, when he went in search of treasure beneath Berk, treasure only a hiccup like him could find. They help clear the labyrinth, but instead of guarding, they're eager to move on, into the inner ring.

Hiccup looks fascinated by the architecture, wandering slowly along at Toothless' side, eyes glued to anything and everything. He has one hand on his dragon's neck, not entirely watching where he's going, eager to point out interesting tidbits to the person he's with, when-

He steps on a tile in the floor that depresses, right in front of one of the doors, and the floor around crumbles to dust over a black hole. Hiccup yelps and Toothless yanks him back just in the nick of time, gripping the back of his tunic in sharp teeth.] Woah! They, uh, they really didn't want visitors, huh?

Phase III
[This is it. This is the entrance to the center of the labyrinth, the inner chamber. The tall doors are intricately carved, seemingly made up of a lot of small pieces that have shifted and settled into the pattern they've taken. It blocks the way forward; the only way back is through the inner maze, which is thankfully mostly clear of booby traps at this point.

Hiccup burns with curiosity. This is a good distraction for his mind, to take away from his troubles, at least for a while. He wants to see what lies at the center of the labyrinth, wants to see what the first people of Riverview hid here and went to such lengths to protect.

Toothless mrrs quietly at his side, staring up at the door with confusion, head cocked to the side. Hiccup strokes his scales for a moment, his smile small but excited as he turns to the other person who waits with him in front of this new puzzle. He steps forward to trace his fingers over the runes etched into the stone, examining carefully each dip and groove, each notch and bump. There is a worn, holey, woven basket of reeds on a short pillar next to the door, and a smattering of different kinds of stones inside. They each look like they could fit into each of the notches in a gear-like mechanism on the door, but no two stones are alike.] I think these are supposed to fit into the notches, maybe in a pattern? If the right stones don't go in, it won't turn?

Is that... maybe that's writing, there, etched into the stone. Clues to what goes where?

Wildcard
[If you want something different, just pm me or hit me up at nekky!]

II

[tempredmental]

Guess we can't go that way.

[Keith frowned a bit at the now gaping hole in front of them. Though, technically, they both probably could. He had Red, and Hiccup had Toothless.]

Unless you want to fly over it.

[See what's beyond?]

Steve Rogers (616) | OTA

[livingsymbol]

i. clearing the way

[ The initial exploration seems straightforward enough. Clearing a path and finding the main rooms of the labyrinth is something Steve is happy to do. He joins one of the various groups of volunteers heading into the tunnels for the first part of the mission. It wouldn't be a real hidden labyrinth without creatures, though, and soon enough Steve finds himself dodging a sudden lunge from a very large serpentine head. It barely misses him, forcing him to retreat back out of the water snake's range while he regains his footing. ]

So I guess this is why they need people to clear the path in.

[ Good. He crouches down, ready for the fight, and nods to his companion. ]

Get ready.

ii. springing all the traps

[After fighting their way through the first confusing tangle of pathways and the monsters that were still living in the tunnels, Steve volunteers to have a look in the ring-shaped chamber that they've found. He's expecting more monsters and to his credit, he does run into some animals which apparently were left behind like small guard dogs to protect the space. But what he's not quite ready for is the sudden huge pit that magically appears when he steps into the wrong space.

There goes Steve. Unless someone is around who can save him from the messy landing he's about to have.

That would be bad enough, but even after he recovers from the pit trap, it seems like Steve has a natural inclination toward other traps. False tunnels, pressure plates that shoot darts, and even a room that closes off on all sides with solid stone into a cage all impede his progress. It's no wonder that some people eventually decide to travel on their own. But if anyone is with him or happens to come across him in the chamber, he certainly seems to need the extra help against magic traps. Or the occasionally harmless but stubborn locked door.]

iii. tackling the boss fight!

Finally.

[Steve is absolutely done with all of the puzzles and traps from the outer chamber. Give him monsters and battles any day. He clearly doesn't want to solve any more complicated locks just to get from one room to the next. He enters the main chamber, looking around at the seemingly empty area with wary confusion. There are no more symbols or challenges around. It seems peaceful and almost disappointing as he stands in the middle of the vast room. He's about to say something, when the chamber lurches. The whole room shudders and rocks, magic calling something from an unseen place into the enclosed room, nearly knocking Steve off of his feet.]

Do you see it?

[The tension is thick in the air as he tries to locate the cause of the shaking. But as far as he can tell, the room is still empty.]

iv. side quest: marco??

[During his exploration at some point Steve is just... lost. He gets caught by a trap or a wrong turn in the tunnels and becomes completely separated from anyone else. He's left wandering in the dark, because thanks to the monsters of course he lost his light. So at some point a message goes out from Steve's phone:]

Apparently I took a wrong turn.

[Send a rescue party?]

iii

[backwaterbelle]

[Unlike Steve, Rogue elects to remove her feet from the ground the moment she feels the strange pressure differential that comes with magical traveling, hovering a foot off the ground as she stares hard into the chamber. She holds out her torch to shed more light on the room, but it's vast and they clearly need a caster.

Where's Jericho when they need him? Or Wanda, for that begrudging matter.]

Not yet, but ah bet we ain't alone and they ain't gonna offer us milk an' cookies.

[There's a pause where Rogue can't help but chuckle.]

Perception check?

[Bless (and damn) Remy for his nerdiness.]

Victor Frankenstein | OTA

[jolting]

Phase I

[Hearing about an underwater labyrinth, of course he's going to want to take a look. If nothing else, he wants to see how they made it possible for people to actually go inside. But then, he's going to want to go inside. He has a flashlight on his head in case it gets dark to see and a handy sketchbook so he can map everything out as he goes.

And his method for navigating? String. Because if it worked for the original Labyrinth, why the hell not? He tied one end to some solid structure at the entrance and spools it out as he goes down a tunnel. It's slow going since he's drawing it out as he walks, but he'll get every little corner of this place if he can. Once he's taken one branch of a tunnel as far as he can, he backtracks and chooses another path]

Wildcard: Medic

[On an exploration like this, there are bound to be some people wounded. What with triggering traps or just tripping on something they didn't see in the dark. Who even knows. Point is, Victor has set himself up at the entrance to take care of anyone who gets injured]

I

[winscenario]

[ It didn't surprise him at all to find that Victor was curious about the labyrinth, just as Jim's own eager curiosity likely wasn't news to Victor. He was a little reluctant about Victor being out and about after the sickness, but between leaving the doctor to his own devices or joining him... well, at least while they're together he can keep an eye on him, just in case.

While Victor focuses mainly in jotting down notes and drawing the path of the labyrinth, Jim's made sure to carry a few weapons with him. Out here, one never knows what they might find. Stretches of the labyrinth seem to be quieter and with a better view though, and he leans over Victor's shoulder to see the map he's drawing. ]

How's it looking so far?

jim kirk ▹▹ open!

[winscenario]

▹ PHASE II

[ Jim isn't only here to get to the center of the labyrinth. Granted, he's curious beyond words as to what hides past those doors, but what he finds in the chamber itself is already fascinating in its own right. Taking pictures wouldn't be as practical, so instead he's brought a video camera along, a flashlight on his other hand so he can light up any detail that's too dark to show on camera. He tries to capture everything, from any and all artefacts they find there, to the carvings that can still be seen on rock.

Once he's satisfied that he's gotten everything, that's when he moves on to the doors. He studies them one by one, checking for the kinds of traps they have, though carefully so he can hopefully avoid getting caught by one of them in the process. Anyone with him is welcome to be a little more reckless, or to actually save his ass scarce moments before he gets choked by a magical vine or something similar. ]

▹ PHASE III

[ Jim's good with puzzles, so there's that at least. Provided he understands them. Some may be a little more difficult to decipher than others, but once given the riddle, he'll do his best to understand what it means. Some help would be appreciated, though.

If and when he passes the door, he comes face to face with the Guardian. It's not his wish to fight it, but considering that both he and whoever's with him might get hurt, he's ready to defend himself. He will most definitely try to communicate with it, though, even as they fight. ]

(( ooc: super late tag-in but I'm still 100% up for exploration things and shenanigans! ))

[realists]

[ true story: when jyn was three years old she accompanied her mother on a research trip to the planet alpinn, which was so covered in minerals and crystals that the surface was so bright white that the tiny, pigtailed girl had to wear goggles during the day because the planet itself was blinding.

jyn was born with a heart set on exploration, the galaxy had just stamped out any chance she had. now, she is exploring with the same almost childlike wonder, albeit tamped down hard and hidden under her normal veneer of disinterest.

she's going slower than jim, if only because she is still distracted by the carvings when she hears the slow creeeeeeeeeeeeeeeak of the stone door being pushed open and she turns just in time to watch vines whip out to twist around jim, winding around his throat before she can even begin to act. ]

Jim!

[ yooooooo.

jyn sprints over, hurdling one of the broken stone pillars and drawing one of her knives as she goes. her other hand snaps out to grab the vine like she can stop it's progress, but the end of it only seems to coil tighter around him. ] Kriff.

[ time to go weed whacking! she saws at the vine with her knife but it's a magical vine so... just try to hold your breath, kirk. ]